(a) Each operator of a coal mine shall prepare and submit for approval by the Coal Mine Health and Safety District Manager for the district in which the mine is located, a plan providing for the safety of workmen in each slope or shaft that is commenced or extended after June 30, 1971. The plan shall be consistent with prudent engineering design. The methods employed by the operator shall be selected to minimize the hazards to those employed in the initial or subsequent development of any such slope or shaft, and the plan shall include the following:

(1) The name and location of the mine, and the Mine Safety and Health Administration mine identification number, if known;

(2) The name and address of the mine operator;

(3) A description of the construction work and methods to be used in the construction of the slope or shaft, and whether part or all of the work will be performed by a contractor and a description of that part of the work to be performed by a contractor;

(4) The elevation, depth and dimensions of the slope or shaft;

(5) The location and elevation of the coalbed;

(6) The general characteristics of the strata through which the slope or shaft will be developed;

(7) The type of equipment which the operator proposes to use when the work is to be performed by the operator. When work is to be performed by a contractor the operator shall, as soon as known to him, supplement the plan with a description of the type of equipment to be used by the contractor;

(8) The system of ventilation to be used; and

(9) Safeguards for the prevention of caving during excavation.

Upon approval by the Coal Mine Health and Safety District Manager of a slope or shaft sinking plan, the operator shall adopt and comply with such plan.

(a) Examinations of slope and shaft areas shall be made by a certified person for hazardous conditions, including tests for methane and oxygen deficiency:

(1) Within 90 minutes before each shift;

(2) At least once on any shift during which men are employed inside any slope or shaft during development; and

(3) Both before and after blasting.

(b) The surface area surrounding each slope and shaft shall be inspected by a certified person and all hazards in the vicinity shall be corrected before men are permitted to enter the excavation.

(c) All hazards found during any preshift or onshift inspection shall be corrected before men are allowed to enter, or continue to work in such slope or shaft. If hazardous conditions cannot be corrected, or excessive methane concentrations cannot be diluted, the excavation shall be vacated and no person shall be permitted to reenter the slope or shaft to continue excavation operations until the hazardous condition has been abated.

(d) No work shall be performed in any slope or shaft, no drilling equipment shall be started, and no electrical equipment shall be energized if the methane content in such slope or shaft is 1.0 volume per centum, or more.

(e) Nothing in this § 77.1901 shall prevent the specific assignment of men in the slope or shaft for purposes of abating excessive methane concentrations or any other hazardous condition.

(f) The results of all inspections conducted in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (a) of this section shall be recorded in a book approved by the Secretary.

Tests for oxygen deficiency shall be made with a permissible flame safety lamp or other means approved by the Secretary, and tests for methane shall be made with a methane detector approved by the Secretary.

Diesel-powered equipment used in the drilling, mucking, or other excavation of any slope or shaft shall be permissible, and such equipment shall be operated in a permissible manner and shall be maintained in a permissible condition.

Diesel-powered equipment which has been approved by the Bureau of Mines or the Mine Safety and Health Administration under Part 36 of this chapter (Bureau of Mines Schedule 31) is permissible under the provisions of this section.

(a) Hoists used in transporting persons and material during drilling, mucking, or other excavating operations in any slope or shaft shall have rated capacities consistent with the loads to be handled.

(b) Each hoist used in drilling, mucking, or other excavating operations shall be equipped with an accurate and reliable indicator of the position of the cage, platform, or bucket. The indicator shall be installed in clear view of the hoist operator.

(a) Two independent means of signaling shall be provided between the hoistman and all points in a slope or shaft where men are required to work. At least one of these means shall be audible to the hoistman. Signal codes used in any communication system shall be posted conspicuously at each slope and shaft.

(b) Signaling systems used for communication between slopes and shafts and the hoistman shall be tested daily.

(a) Hoists used to transport persons shall be equipped with brakes capable of stopping and holding the cage, bucket, platform, or other device when fully loaded.

(b) When persons are transported by a hoist, a second person familiar with and qualified to stop the hoist shall be in attendance, except where the hoist is fully equipped with overspeed, overwind, and automatic stop devices.

(a) Hoists used to transport persons shall be inspected daily. The inspection shall include examination of the headgear (headframe, sheave wheels, etc.), connections, links and chains, and other facilities.

(b) Prior to each working shift, and before a hoist is returned to service after it has been out of normal service for any reason, the hoist shall be run by the hoist operator through one complete cycle of operation before any person is permitted to be transported.

(c) At the completion of each daily examination required by paragraph (a) of this section, the person making the examination shall certify, by signature and date, that the examination has been made. If any unsafe condition in the hoisting equipment is present, the person conducting the examination shall make a record of the condition and the date. Certifications and records shall be retained for one year.

If hooks are used to attach cages or buckets to the socket or thimble of a hoisting rope, the hooks shall be self-closing.

(a) Where men are transported by means of a hoist and the depth of the shaft exceeds 50 feet, the hoist rope shall be suspended from a substantial hoisting installation which shall be high enough to provide working clearance between the bottom of the sheave and the top of the cage or bucket.

(b) Where men are transported by means of a hoist and the depth of the shaft exceeds 100 feet, temporary shaft guides and guide attachments, or other no less effective means, shall be installed to prevent the cage, platform, or bucket from swinging.

(c) All guides and guide attachments, or other no less effective means, installed in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section shall be maintained to a depth of not less than 75 feet from the bottom of the shaft.

(d) Where crossheads are used, the cage, platform, or bucket shall not be hung more than 10 feet below the crosshead.

(e) Where men are required to embark or disembark from a cage, platform or bucket suspended over or within a shaft, a loading platform shall be installed to insure safe footing.

(f) During the development of each slope or shaft, either a ladder or independently powered auxiliary hoist shall be provided to permit men to escape quickly in the event of an emergency.

(g) No person shall be permitted to ride the rim of any bucket or on the top of a loaded bucket.

(h) The number of persons permitted to ride in cages, skips, or buckets shall be limited so as to prevent overcrowding.

(i) Persons shall not be permitted to ride on a cage, skip, or bucket with tools or materials, except when necessary to handle equipment while in transit. Materials shall be secured to prevent shifting while being hoisted.

(j) The speed of buckets transporting persons shall not exceed 500 feet per minute and not more than 200 feet per minute when within 100 feet of any stop.

(k) A notice of established speeds shall be posted in clear view of the hoistman.

(l) Conveyances being lowered in a shaft in which men are working shall be stopped at least 15 feet above such men and shall be lowered further only after the hoistman has received a signal that all men who may be endangered by the conveyance are in the clear.

(m) No skip or bucket shall be raised or lowered in a slope or shaft until it has been trimmed to prevent material from falling back down the slope or shaft.

(n) Measures shall be taken to prevent material from falling back into the shaft while buckets or other conveyances are being unloaded.

(o) Properly attached safety belts shall be worn by all persons required to work in or over any shaft where there is a drop of 10 or more feet, unless other acceptable means are provided to prevent such persons from falling into the shaft.

Hoists shall be under the control of and operated by a qualified hoistman when men are in a slope or shaft.

Except as provided in § 77.1909-1, only permissible explosives and permissible shot-firing units shall be used in sinking shafts and slopes.

Where the Coal Mine Health and Safety District Manager has determined that the use of nonpermissible explosives and nonpermissible shot-firing units will not pose a hazard to any person during the development of a slope or shaft, he may, after written application by the operator, approve the use of such explosives and shot-firing units and issue a permit for the use of such explosives and devices setting forth the safeguards to be employed by the operator to protect the health and safety of any person exposed to such blasting.

(a) Light and power circuits shall be disconnected or removed from the blasting area before charging and blasting.

(b) All explosive materials, detonators, and any other related blasting material employed in the development of any slope or shaft shall be stored, transported, carried, charged, and fired in accordance with the provision of Subpart N, “Explosives and Blasting,” of this Part 77. Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, all shots shall be fired from the surface.

(c) Where tests for methane have been conducted and methane has not been found and only permissible blasting units are being employed, shots may be fired from an upper level of the slope or shaft.

(d) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, all men shall be removed from the slope or shaft prior to blasting.

(e) Blasting areas in slopes or shafts shall be covered with mats or other suitable material when the excavation is too shallow to retain blasted material.

(f) Where it is impracticable to prepare primers in the blasting area, primers may be prepared on the surface and carried into the shaft in specially constructed, insulated, covered containers.

(g) No other development operation shall be conducted in a shaft or at the face of a slope while drill holes are being charged and until after all shots have been fired.

(h) The sides of the slope or shaft between the overhead platform and the bottom where men are working shall be examined after each blast and loose material removed.

(i) Loose rock and other material shall be removed from timbers and platforms after each blast before men are lowered to the shaft bottom.

(a) All slopes and shafts shall be ventilated by mechanical ventilation equipment during development. Such equipment shall be examined before each shift and the quantity of air in the slope or shaft measured daily by a certified person and the results of such examinations and tests recorded in a book approved by the Secretary.

(b) Ventilation fans shall be:

(1) Installed on the surface;

(2) Installed in fireproof housing and connected to the slope or shaft opening with fireproof air ducts;

(3) Designed to permit the reversal of the air current, and located in an area which will prevent a recirculation of air from the slope or shaft or air contamination from any other source;

(4) Equipped with an automatic signal device designed to give an alarm in the event the fan slows or stops which can be seen or heard by any person on duty in the vicinity of the fan, except where fans are constantly attended.

(5) Offset not less than 15 feet from the shaft; and

(6) Equipped with air ducts which are fire resistant and maintained so as to prevent excessive leakage of air;

(i) Flexible ducts shall be constructed to permit ventilation by either exhausting or blowing methods and when metal air ducts are used, they shall be grounded effectively to remove static and other electrical charges;

(ii) Ducts shall extend as close to the bottom as necessary to ventilate properly.

(c) A qualified person, designated by the operator, shall be assigned to maintain each ventilating system.

(d) The fan shall be operated continuously when men are below the surface. Any accidental stoppage or reduction in airflow shall be corrected promptly; however, where repairs cannot be made immediately, development work below the surface shall be stopped and all the men not needed to make necessary repairs shall be removed to the surface.

(a) Substantial stairways or ladders shall be used during the construction of all shafts where no mechanical means are provided for men to travel.

(b) Landings at intervals of not more than 30 feet shall be installed.

(c) Shaft ladders shall project 3 feet above the collar of the shaft, and shall be placed at least 3 inches from the side of the shaft.

Except for crossties, timbers, and other wood products which are permanently installed in slopes and shafts, shall be fire resistant.

(a) Electric equipment employed below the collar of a slope or shaft during excavation shall be permissible and shall be maintained in a permissible condition.

(b) The insulation of all electric conductors employed below the collar of any slope or shaft during excavation shall be of the flame resistant type.

(c) Only lamps and portable flood lights approved by the Bureau of Mines or the Mine Safety and Health Administration under Part 19 and Part 20 of this chapter (Bureau of Mines Schedules 6D and 10C) shall be employed below the collar of any slope or shaft.

(a) Compressed and liquefied gas, oil, gasoline, and other petroleum products shall not be stored within 100 feet of any slope or shaft opening.

(b) Other combustible material and supplies shall not be stored within 25 feet of any slope or shaft opening.

(c) Pyritic slates, bony coal, culm or other material capable of spontaneous combustion shall not be used for fill or as surfacing material within 100 feet of any slope or shaft opening.

(d) Areas surrounding the opening of each slope or shaft shall be constructed to insure the drainage of flammable liquids away from the slope or shaft in the event of spillage.

(e) Oily rags, waste, waste paper, and other combustible waste material disposed of in the vicinity of any slope or shaft opening shall be stored in closed containers until removed from the area.

(a) One portable fire extinguisher shall be provided where welding, cutting, or soldering with arc or flame is performed.

(b) Welding, cutting, or soldering with arc or flame within or in the vicinity of any slope or shaft, except where such operations are performed in fireproof enclosures, shall be done under the supervision of a qualified person who shall make a diligent search within or in the vicinity of the slope or shaft for fire during and after such operations.

(c) Before welding, cutting, or soldering is performed in any slope or shaft designed to penetrate into any coalbed below the surface, an examination for methane shall be made by a qualified person with a device approved by the Secretary for detecting methane. Examination for methane shall be made immediately before and periodically during welding, cutting, or soldering and such work shall not be permitted to commence or continue in air which contains 1.0 volume per centum or more of methane.

(d) Noncombustible barriers shall be installed below welding, cutting, or soldering operations in or over a shaft.